On 15/9/06, Mark Roberts, discombobulated, unleashed: >Yep. The "pro" disdain for pop-up flash is pure snobbery. I've seen >some of Galen Rowell's climbing photos, taken while roped in half way >up enormous rock walls and carrying just one body and lens, in which >he used the built-in flash for fill. Using the built-in flash for fill >has saved some shots I've taken while backpacking when I didn't have a >separate flash (and it wouldn't have been practical to bring one).
Horses for courses. Have you looked at professional cameras? Seen the eyepiece *missing*? Seen bits of gaffer tape here and there, usually holding the lenshood together, that is - if there *is* a lenshood. Most often, it's gone. Why? It's a weak point. So is a pop-up flash. I'm sure most professional snappers would agree that it's a handy thing to have, but i would suggest that most professional PJs would have it knocked off in a matter of days. Pro cameras are designed by large companies. They design them without flashes because they know that professionals will buy all the kit needed to provide flash, because professionals have to spend money to avoid giving it to the revenue instead. There's no snobbery involved. If I get a contract with my current employer as a freelance, I will have to buy a lens costing nearly £10k, when for all intents and purposes, I could get away with a lens costing 1/5th of that. (Actually I am going to try and reduce that to about £6K but that's a different story). The point is, I need the expensive lens because as a professional I have to be equipped with the kit that I might be called on to use, even if I only use its wide angle capability (say) 5% of the time. If I didn;t have it, it might lose me a job and as a freelance that is not good business sense. Sorry, digressing. If a professional photographer had some 1Ds/D2x cameras and was going abseiling and needed a short lens and fill flash with little weight and bulk, he/she'd just go buy a good point and shoot, or even a D50/400D/ *istD or whatever and use it for that job. When it's a business, they become tools that need buying, and depreciate and need replacing. With respect, the perceived snobbery originates from an amateur viewpoint, which isn't such a bad thing actually. Most professional stills people would regard a list like this as full of geeks. Why? Because as a professional TV cameraman, I regard a similar mailing list on video cameras as full of geeks and wouldn't be seen dead there. My excuse is I don't get paid for my stills, it's a hobby and a passion, just like most others here. I (we) enjoy it, right? Chatting about your day job is great fun, but not with strangers - only for gossiping with colleagues. Same with professional stills people. Sorry, i've lost the plot completely now. I blame the wine. *parp* -- Cheers, Cotty ___/\__ || (O) | People, Places, Pastiche ||=====| http://www.cottysnaps.com _____________________________ -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
